Storytellers were known as Griots (female: Griotte), who were the historians with stories. They used to be court musicians and even teachers for princes and council for kings in the time of Emperor Sundiata. These storytellers weren’t all about talking; they paid critical attention to gestures, tones, body language, repetition, and more to tell their story. Story telling was their biggest example of social interactions, and this was one of the greatest ways that the people could feel a sense of community.

The people of Mali used to believe in the Dogon religion. They were animists, had no written language, and expressed their knowledge through art forms. They would speak Manding languages, which had multiple dialects. After Islam was introduced to the people of Mali, they were more unified, both through language and religion. Since the Koran was in Arabic, the people could all learn to speak, read, write in Arabic, which brought people together. The introduction of Islam centralized political power as well. Islam also allowed trade to be a bigger part of people's lives.

Ibn Battuta, a traveler, visited Mali for eight months. When he first visited, he expected the people to be very religious, while following the Koran. However, he was surprised to see people incorporating their traditions with religion. He found that unlike other Muslim countries, men and women were not segregated, and criticized the festivities. Ibn Battuta's writings reveal how the people of Mali blended their traditions with religion, which revealed how the people accepted Islam, while also preserving their traditions.

Excavations at Gao (c. 750 CE onward), a trading town on the Niger River in West Africa, yielded artifacts from across the Sahara such as glass beads and bronze artifacts that attest to the fact that this place was an important staging post for trans-Saharan trade. Excavations at other trading centers in the same region such as Tadmekka on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert in Mali yielded coin molds and other objects that demonstrate the existence of trade and exchange and the use of coinage in Islamized trading towns of West Africa from the 9th and 10th centuries CE onward (Chirikure).

Archaeological work outside of trading centers has also identified objects that are known to indicate consumption of materials, commodities, and ideas originating from different areas. The similarity between Igbo Ukwu beads and Zhizo types in southern Africa suggests chronologically overlapping connections between, on the one hand, West Africa, North Africa, and the Middle East and, on the other, southern Africa and the Middle East via East Africa. This attests to the fact that from 700 CE onward most African regions were networked through the emerging trading system that with time intensively connected Afro-Eurasia. Archaeological research in numerous parts of Africa exposed the existence of large-scale production debris that is consistent with commodities production beyond local needs. Indeed, this archaeological observation from large-scale production centers is supported by historical information that makes an explicit case for specialization and trade in metal. Other resources such as salt that were intensively exploited at Taghaza (Mali) were traded across large parts of North and West Africa and partly sustained the economy of empires such as Ghana, Mali, and Songhay (Chirikure).

topped by a golden falcon (Conrad).

By the mid-14th century, when Mali was at its highest point of imperial dominance, the trans-Saharan trade had greatly increased in volume. Because of Mansa Musa’s extravagant pilgrimage and the resulting publicity in Cairo, Mali became better known in North Africa and the Middle East, and even Europe. Stories of Mali’s wealth drew increasing numbers of North Africans to trading ventures across the Sahara. In the decades following Mansa Musa’s pilgrimage, Egyptian traders were regular visitors to Mali, and Malian citizens in commercial centers like Walata were dressing in clothes imported from Egypt. Mansa Musa exchanged diplomatic embassies with the sultan of Morocco, which added new stimulus to trade with the Maghrib (Northwest Africa) (Conrad).

Mali's gold was important all over the world. In the later Medieval period, West Africa may have been producing almost two-thirds of the world's supply of gold! Mali also supplied other trade items - ivory, ostrich feathers, kola nuts, hides, and slaves. No wonder there was talk about the Kingdom of Mali and its riches! And no wonder Ibn Battuta, still restless after his trip to Al-Andalus, set his mind on visiting the sub-Saharan kingdom (UC Berkeley).

Despite the grandeur of the Mali Empire, historians agreed that many bad rulers had afflicted the nation. Even so, Sundiata’s son Mansa Wali, who was the second Mansa, is considered to have been one of the most powerful rulers of Mali.  Mansa Wali was then succeeded by his brother Mansa  Wati, who was then succeeded by their youngest brother Khalifa. Khalifa was described as a terrible ruler. Witnesses claimed he killed people with a bow and arrows for fun. Khalifa's reign ended after being overthrown and replaced by a grandchild of Sundiata named Abu Bakr. However, even Abu Bakr’s reign was troubled. He was overthrown by a man named Sakura. Sakura’s reign also ended badly as he was killed by the Danakil people after going on a pilgrimage to Mecca shortly after converting to Islam.

It is debated as to whether Sakura was a slave or a military commander. Even so, the low status of Sakura implies that the royal family had lost much power and popularity amongst the commoners. Sakura’s ascent to power illustrates that the ruling family and the Mansa held limited authority in the Empire of Mali, while the officers of the court possessed substantial influence in comparison. This was due to the decentralized government system of Mali.

The empire of Mali was organized into provinces and contained a strict hierarchy. Each province was ruled by a governor, and every town had a mayor, also known as a mochrif. The empire was able to deploy large armies to prevent rebellion and safeguard trade routes. The decentralized government, hierarchies, and military are what kept Mali so stable despite its history of troublesome rulers. The power of those in lower positions allowed the empire to function even if there was a conflict with the Mansas.

The savanna of sub-Saharan West Africa was first described in writing by Arab travelers and geographers, who called it the Bilad-al-Sudan. The relatively fertile soil and grasslands of the savanna made it possible for the early occupants of the Western Sudan to harness their natural resources. They made the transition from basically surviving by hunting and gathering, to more reliable production of food by herding domestic livestock such as cattle, sheep, and goats, and cultivating grains such as millet, fonio, and sorghum. Their production of surplus food led to the development of trade with neighboring peoples. Their mastery of iron for tools and weapons and the later acquisition of horses made it possible for some peoples of the Sudan to field superior armies and dominate others. The economic and military successes of these more powerful

groups eventually led to the founding of Ghana, Mali, and Songhay, three of the greatest empires in African history (Conrad).

Beyond the major cities of Segu and Jenne in Mali, the Niger River reaches the great trading port of Mopti, where it turns north. Then, through hundreds of miles, the river turns gradually back to the east as it passes Timbuktu, until it is flowing southeastward past Gao. This great turn in the river, which continues to where it flows into modern-day Nigeria, is called the Niger Bend. The Niger Bend area of the Middle Niger, which includes the vast Inland Delta, was the heartland of the Songhay Empire. It was such a desirable region that neighboring peoples would periodically try to take control of the area, and this kept the armies of Songhay busy maintaining their control (Conrad).

newly controlled trade routes, enriched the government treasury (Conrad).